Cane mill



Patented Jan. 10, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CANE MILL Francisco Tormes Penton, Central Florida, Florida, Cuba, assignor to Farrel-Birmlnghamcompany, Incorporated, Ansonia, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application October 24, 1945, Serial No. 624,118

roller' type.

In mills of this type the bagasse is moved over a turnplatein the space between the two lower rolls, that is, the cane roll and the bagasse roll, and the bagasse in this region is in the form of a very dense mat, due to the heavy pressures exerted by the rolls. Moving along with the dense body of fiber is a substantial quantity of juice. It would be desirable to have this juice pass readily by gravity into the underlying pan, but in previous mills a body of juice has at times been dammed or trapped at or adjacent the upper surface of the bagasse, which has materially reduced the efficiency of the mill.

It has-been proposed in the past to provide escape means forthis: trapped juice, and different expedients have been suggested. They have,

. however, been open to the objection of considerably increased cost of the apparatus or to other objections.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide the mill with simple, effective, and relatively inexpensive means providing for the elimination of the juice pocket which has heretofore been present.

Another object is to provide improved drainage means for the mass of fiber and juice in the space between the lower surface of the top roll and the upper surfaces of the lower rolls and turnplate.

Another object is to provide means whereby the moisture of the bagasse produced by the mill can be materially reduced.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. l is a top plan view of a cane mill embodying the invention, the circumferential grooving of the rolls being only partially indicated;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the mill;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fi 2;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on a larger scale, showing certain parts appearing in Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 is an inner face view of one of the top roll flanges.

In the drawings, the showing of the threeroller millis conventional, except as regards the provisions for controlling and discharging the juice accompanying or in connection with the bagasse mat travelling through the mill. The cane rollis shown at H), the top roll at l l, and the bagasse roll at l2. The turnplate, which may be of the usual or any preferred kind, is shown at IS.

The rolls I0, I I and I2 may beof the usual or any preferred kind, and they are illustrated as having the customary circumferential' grooving. In the form illustrated, the cane roll ID has relatively fine grooves and the turnplate l3: has a toothed edge portion taking into these grooves. The other two rolls are shown as having coarser grooves. Thetoproll I I has end flanges Moverlapping the ends of the turnplate body in the manner shown in Fig. 3, and overlapping the ends of the bodies of rolls i0 and I2.

In carrying out this invention, the flanges It or equivalent members have juice-drainage means provided in association therewith wherebythe juice usually trapped in the space below the lower surface of the top roll and'the upper surface of the turnplate is permitted to escape and to pass directly to the juice pan l5. In the par.- ticular form shown, the inner face of each of. the flanges I4 is provided with a series of drainage grooves I 6. These grooves may be formed by cutting the flange in a suitable manner. Each groove has an open end l1 adjacent the outer edge of the flange, as shown in Fig. 5, and each groove has a closed inner end portion is adjacent the body portion 1 l' of the top roll. In the case shown in the drawings, the grooves have a width of one-quarter inch and a depth of onequarter inch, but these dimensions are given only by way of example, and it is understood that the invention is not limited to any particular dimensions.

It is also to be noted that the grooves have a secantal relation to the end flange, so as to have an inclined or angular relation to a radius of the flange and roll intersecting the groove. This provides a very advantageous feature in the operation of the mill, as will be hereinafter pointed out. The arrangement of the grooves is such that, as the grooves move downwardly toward and close to the cane roll, their open ends are directed downwardly, as shown in Fig. 2, whereas at the opposite side of the mill the open ends of the grooves as they pass into a region somewhat above the bagasse roll are directed upwardly. In other words, the direction of rotation of the top roll being as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 2, the outer open ends of the grooves l5 are somewhat in advance of the rear or closed ends as the roll rotates.

In the operation of the mill, the cane is fed by the usual or any preferred means into the space between the cane roll and the top roll. and is gripped and squeezed by these rolls, expressing a certain quantity of juice, and forming a dense mat of fiber that moves over the upper surface of the turnplate and into the space between the bagasse roll and the top roll. The bagasse roll is set closer to the top roll than is the cane roll and is more deeply grooved than the cane roll, and in the space between the bagasse roll and top roll the mat is given a final and heavy pressure before being delivered from the mill. This travelling mat is confined to a very large degree by the turnplate and by the top roll flanges overlapping the bodies of the other rolls, and previously it has been a common occurrence for a pocket of juice to be formed between the upper surface of the mat and the lower surface of the top roll. This, however, is prevented or largely overcome by the present structure in which juice tending to accumulate in the region referred to is permitted free escape to the pan l5 by way of the drainage grooves 16. Fig. 5 shows how the juice can escape from the space between the top roll and the cane roll, and it will be understood that a similar condition will obtain in the space between the top roll and the bagasse roll. Juice lying at the upper surface of the mat and a certain amount of juice confined in the mat can pass freely in a lateral direction into an adjacent drainage groove, as shown by way of example in Fig. 5, and such juice issuing from the discharging end of the drainage groove drops by gravity into the pan which is located vertically beneath the groove.

It will be noted from Fig. 2 that adjacent the bite between the top roll and the cane roll, those drainage grooves which are in operation are more or less upright, the open ends being lowermost, which facilitates the draining off of the juice. In that portion of the mat lying over the turnplate, the grooves have positions which are approximately upright and here also the downward drainage is very good. Good drainage also obtains in the region of the bite between the bagasse roll and the top roll, as will be seen from Fig. 2. It will be noted that in this form the grooves do not reach a substantially horizontal position until a level at about the summit of the bagasse roll is reached. After reaching a horizontal position and in continuing the orbital movement at the discharge side of the mill, there will be no further draining, but by this time all of the juice will have been drained out of the grooves. As the juice drains out of the grooves by gravity, moving in a downward direction, the grooves are flushed out and pieces of fiber that may have lodged therein are washed out and carried off.

In the particular form shown, each drainage groove has an angle of approximately 30 to a radial line drawn to the outer end of the groove. Variation, however,'may be made in this respect as conditions may require. Also, in this form, the spacing between two adjacent grooves is such as to approximate roughly the length of a groove, but variation may be made in this respect also.

In the ordinary three-roller mill, the occlusion of juice adjacent the bagasse moving over the turnplate has been evidenced by an occasional spitting or squirting of juice from the mill, which took place at a time when, after the building up of a large amount of pressure, this pressure was temporarily relieved. The condition, of which this was an indication, was such as to interfere seriously with the efficiency of the mill. An excess of juice would be retained in or in connection with the mat, and, upon a release or a reduction of pressure, this juice would be absorbed into the bagasse. By the present invention, this serious drawback is overcome in a simple and efiective way, and, at the same time, the cost of the mill is not materially increased. The increased efiiciency of the mill is indicated by the drier condition of the resulting bagasse.

It will be seen that, in the mill illustrated in the drawings, effective draining off of juice from the mat engagedin the bites between the respective lower rolls and the top roll is provided by the drainage conduits or grooves used in association with the flanges of the top roll, said conduits or grooves being so arranged that they are washed clear of particles of bagasse. As herein described, these conduits or grooves come into action as they approach the first bite of the mill and continue in action as the mat passes over the turnplate and through the second bite. In the first bite they drain the juice downwardly to the underlying pan, and this continues as the grooves move past the turnplate and also as they pass the second bite, thereby providing effective drainage in all of these locations.

While only one form of the invention is shown herein, it is to be understood that the invention can take different forms and that various modifl cations and changes in the details may be made without departure from the principles of the invention or the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. A cane mill having a top roll and two lower rolls, the top roll having end flanges overlapping the bodies of the lower rolls, each of said end flanges having a series of juice-draining grooves therein at the inner face thereof.

2. A cane mill having a top roll and two lower rolls, the top roll having end flanges overlapping the bodies of the lower rolls, each of said end flanges having a series of juice-draining grooves at the inner face thereof, said grooves having open discharging ends and open sides and being arranged to receive juice in the open sides at points near the body of the top roll and carry it in an outward direction with reference to the top roll axis.

3. A cane mill having a top roll and two lower rolls and having a turnplate in the space between the lower rolls, end flanges on said top roll, and said end flanges having juice conduits in the inner faces thereof leading away from the top roll surface which are active in carrying off juice by gravity from the cane mat as it moves across the turnplate.

4. A cane mill having atop roll, a cane roll, and a bagasse roll, and also having a turnplate between the cane roll and the bagasse roll, the top roll being provided with end flanges overlapping the bodies of the other two rolls, each end flange being provided on its inner face with drainage grooves, said drainage grooves being arranged on said flanges so that the grooves come into action for downward drainage of juice by way of said grooves at the feeding side of the mill and remain in action as'they move past the turnplate.

5. A three-roller sugar cane mill having end flanges on its top roll, said flanges being provided with drainage conduits leading away from the top roll axis for draining ofi juice from the mat going through the mill and having open outer ends, said conduits going into action at the feeding side of the mill and continuing in action at the discharge side, each conduit being formed as a groove arranged in the inner face of each flange at. an angle 'of approximately 30 to a radius of the top roll drawn to the outer end of the groove.

6. A three-roller sugar cane mill having end flanges on its top r011, said flanges being provided With drainage conduits leading away from the top roll axis for draining off juice from the mat going through the mill and having open outer ends, said conduits going into action at the feeding side of the mill and continuing in action at the discharge side, each conduit being formed as a groove arranged in the inner face of each flange at an angle of approximately 30 to a radius of the top roll drawn to the outer end of the groove, said grooves being positioned to receive juice passing to them from the side edges of the mat and having open discharge mouths adjacent the periphery of the corresponding flange.

7. A cane mill roll provided with end flanges, said end flanges having at their inner faces grooves leading away from the roll surface and having outer discharge ends at the flange periphery for discharging juice, said grooves being adapted to receive juice moving laterally from the cane blanket.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,908,519 Leonard May 9, 1933 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 319,852 Great Britain Oct. 3, 1929 

